It seems like the kind of conversation Bulls coach Billy Donovan would remember, but “that situation with Giannis has never been communicated to me one way or the other,” he said Friday.
He was referring to the latest Bulls rumor that Bucks forward and two-time league MVP Giannis Ante-to–kounmpo reportedly was looking at the Bulls as a possible trade destination, only to be told they were focused on their current build-out.
Donovan said he has had no recent talks on the subject with Arturas Karnisovas, the Bulls’ executive vice president of basketball operations, or general manager Marc Eversley, both of whom he speaks with almost daily.
Beyond that, there are far better situations for Antetokounmpo and the Bucks than what the Bulls would be able to offer.
With a 120-105 loss to the Pacers on Friday night at the United Center, the Bulls (9-13) have now dropped six straight games, falling to the Pelicans, the Hornets, the Magic, the Nets and the Pacers twice. Antetokounmpo is reportedly looking to go somewhere to win.
Karnisovas has said in the past that the Bulls were open to jumping at an opportunity for a star player. The Sun-Times reported last season that they were disappointed they didn’t hear from the Mavericks before they traded Luka Doncic. However, the front office doesn’t seem interested in skipping steps in their current reload, especially when it’s unclear what the Bulls have, exactly, with multiple players injured this season.
All Donovan could speak to was that Antetokounmpo’s name hasn’t come up.
“I think [Karnisovas and Eversley], when stuff has presented itself that is real, they come to me,” Donovan said. “I would say they’re not having conversations with me on their daily conversations each and every day, so I don’t really have any conversations about that. Generally, if there was something that was real, potentially could happen, that’s on the table, something that’s in the works or a possibility, they’ve always come to me and communicated with me.”
Donovan also hasn’t been told the front office no longer believes in this roster.
“I haven’t heard anything in terms of the front office — happy, mad, down in the dumps — about the group,” Donovan said. “I do think anyone that is evaluating our team from a front-office standpoint would want to see what the group looks like completely whole.”
Pieced together with backups and G League players recently, the Bulls have looked like a mess. The defense offered little resistance against Pacers forward Pascal Siakam, who dropped a game-high 36 points on them.
“I feel like we still have a chance to go on a run,” Bulls guard Coby White after the game. “I’ve been in this league a couple years now, and lottery team or not, everybody is talented. Even though [the Pacers aren’t] winning the way they want to win, they’ve got championship DNA. . . . I don’t view a team, ‘Well, just because of their record.’ Every team has the best players in the world. Everybody is talented.”
It’s a hard lesson the Bulls keep getting hit with. And despite rumors, it doesn’t seem that immediate help is on the way.